Safety stirrup



1964 J. D. KITCHINGHAM,.JR 3,157,977

SAFETY STIRRUP Filed Aug. 20, 1962 INVENTOR. JOHN D. KITCHINGHAM,JR.

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United States Patent O 3,157,977 SAFETY STIRRUP John D. Kitchingham, Jr., 2908 Myrtle, San Diego, Calif. Filed Aug. 20, 1%2, Ser. No. 218,017 4 Claims. (Cl. 5449) The present invention relates generally to equestrian harness and more particularly to a safety stirrup.

The primary object of this invention is to provide a stirrup having a hinged side portion which is an integral part of the stirrup and is held firmly in place in normal use, yet will open and release a riders foot automatically in the event that the rider falls from the horse.

Another object of this invention is to provide a safety stirrup which will open regardless of the direction of the riders fall.

Another object of this invention is to provide a safety stirrup, the opening pressure of which is adjustable to suit the weight of individual rider and for various riding conditions.

A further object of this invention is to provide safety stirrup structure which can be incorporated into stirrups of conventional basic design.

Finally, it is an object to provide a safety stirrup of the aforementioned character which is simple and convenient to manufacture and which will give generally efficient and durable service.

With these and other objects definitely in view, this invention consists in the novel construction, combination and arrangement of elements and portions, as will be hereinafter fully described in the specification, particularly pointed out in the claims, and illustrated in the drawing which forms a material part of this disclosure, and in which:

FIGURE 1 is a front elevation view of the safety stirrup, partially cut away;

FIGURE 2 is a side elevation view thereof;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line 33 of FIGURE 1; and

FIGURE 4 is a top plan view of the stirrup.

Similar characters of reference indicate similar or identical elements and portions throughout the specification and throughout the views of the drawing.

The stirrup 15) is of generally conventional configuration and comprises a substantially U-shaped element having a lower foot rest 12 with upwardly extending side arms, one being a fixed side arm 14 integral with said foot rest and the other being a hinged release arm 16. The upper ends of arms 14 and 16 are connected by a cross bar 18 around which the usual stirrup supporting strap 20 is secured. The lower end of release arm 16 has an enlarged boss 22 through which is fitted a hinge pin 24, said hinge pin extending into a thickened portion 26 of foot rest 12 and being secured by a lock screw 28. Hinge pin 24 is substantially parallel to cross bar 18 and release arm 16 is hinged to swing from front to rear as the stirrup is mounted in normal use, that is, the release arm will swing open rearwardly.

Cross bar 18 comprises a tubular sleeve 30 fixed at one end to the upper end of side arm 14, the fixed end of said sleeve being fitted with a removable access plug 32. At the other end of sleeve 30 is a fixed cap 34 through which is mounted an axially slidable plunger 36, the outer end of said plunger having an outwardly flared, substantially conical retaining plug 38 with a radially extending flange 40 at the large outer end thereof. The inner end of plunger 36 has a threaded portion 42 on which is an adjustable nut 44, said nut having a lock screw an accessible through a slot 43 in sleeve 30, as in FIGURE 3. Between the nut 44 and cap 34 is a spring 50 which biases plunger 36 inwardly. The upper end of release arm 16 "ice has a tongue 52 with an open release slot 54 in one side terminating in a conical socket 56 which fits around retaining plug 38. When release arm 16 is closed in the normal configuration of the stirrup, retaining plug 38 is held securely in socket 56 by the spring 50, so holding the release arm in place.

In use, a ridersfoot will be on foot rest 12 between arms 14 and 16 and, under normal circumstances, can be easily inserted into and removed from the stirrup. However, should the rider fall from the horse, the direction of fall will normally be to the rear and one foot will usually be already free while the other will be turned in the stirrup before the rider hastime to pull it free. Many riders have been caught in this manner and been injuried from being dragged by the hose. With the stirrup illustrated, the release arm 16 will automatically fly open when a load is placed thereon, the pull causing the retaining plug 38 to ride up in socket 56 against the spring 50, and the release slot 54 allowing tongue 52 to pull free of the plunger 36, as indicated in broken line in FIGURE 2. The foot can be twisted in either direction in the stirrup but, regardless of the direction of twist, or if the foot has slipped forward and the heel is caught, the action of the foot during a fall will cause the release arm 16 to open rearwardly and free the foot.

The required operating pressure can be varied to suit the weight of individual riders by adjusting nut 44 to control the pressure of spring 50, the nut being secured at the appropriate position by lock screw 46. Access plug 32 is removed to expose nut 44, which may be provided with a screwdriver slot 58 for ease of adjustment. Thus a light pressure can be set to ensure proper release for a light rider and a heavy pressure for a heavy rider, so

I that normal use will not cause the stirrup to open inadvertently. While it is not desired to limit the conical angle of retaining plug 38, it has been found that an angle of about 42 degrees between the inclined face and the axis provides a satisfactory and positive release.

The stirrup is preferably of all metal construction and can be used as illustrated, or may be covered in part or completely with leather to match other harness. The structure is adaptable to various styles of stirrups presently in use without interfering with the conventional use of the stirrups.

It is understood that minor variation from the form of the invention disclosed herein may be made without departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, and that the specification and drawing are to be considered as merely illustrative rather than limiting.

I claim:

1. A safety stirrup, comprising:

a transverse lower foot rest;

an upwardly extending fixed side arm on one side of said foot rest;

an upwardly extending release arm pivotally attached to the other side of said foot rest;

a cross bar fixed at one end to the upper end of said fixed side arm;

the pivotal axis of said upwardly extending release arm being generally parallel to the axis of said cross bar;

a plunger axially slidably mounted in said cross bar;

said plunger having a retaining plug engageable with the upper end of said release arm;

and means biasing said plunger to hold said release arm on said retaining plug until released by a predeterm ned force on the release arm.

2. A safety stirrup, comprising:

a transverse lower foot rest;

an upwardly extending fixed side arm on one side of said foot rest;

an upwardly extending release arm pivotally attached toithetother sideiof said foot rest;

a cross bar fixed at one end to the upper end of said fixed side arm;

a plunger axially slidably mounted in said cross bar;

said plunger having a substantiallyiconical retaining plug thereon;

the upper end of said release arm having a substantially conical socket receiving said retaining plug, and an open ended slot extending from one side of said socket;

and means biasing said plunger to hold said retaining plug seated in said socket, said slot being of such size and shape as to permitpassage therethrough of saidplunger upon application of a predetermined force to said release arm.

3. A safety stirrup, comprising:

a transverse lower foot rest;

an upwardly extending fixed side arm on one side of said footrest;

an upwardly extending release arm pivotally attached to the other side of said foot rest;

a hollow cross bar fixed at one end to the upper end of said' fixed sidearm;

a plunger axially slidably mounted in said cross bar;

said plunger having a substantially conical retaining plug on the outer end thereof; adjustable means on the inner end thereof;

the upper end of said release arm having a substantially conical socket receiving said retaining plug, and an open ended slot extending from one side of said socket;

said slot being of such size and shape as to permit passage therethrough of said plunger upon application of a predetermined force to said release arm;

a spring connected between said adjustable means and said hollow cross bar for biasing said plunger to hold said retaining plug seated in said socket;

and spring adjusting means on said plunger operable to control the force necessary to release said release arm from said retaining plug.

4. A safety stirrup according to claim 3 and including a removable access plug in the fixed end of said cross bar for access to said spring adjusting means.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 346,174 Shearer July 27, 1886 1,520,586 McCamis Dec. 23, 1924 2,670,932 Westerfors Mar. 2, 1954 2,772,532 Tawn Dec. 4, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 10,232 Great Britain June 1, 1889 

1. A SAFETY STIRRUP, COMPRISING: A TRANSVERSE LOWER FOOT REST; AN UPWARDLY EXTENDING FIXED SIDE ARM ON ONE SIDE OF SAID FOOT REST; AN UPWARDLY EXTENDING RELEASE ARM PIVOTALLY ATTACHED TO THE OTHER SIDE OF SAID FOOT REST; A CROSS BAR FIXED AT ONE END TO THE UPPER END OF SAID FIXED SIDE ARM; THE PIVOTAL AXIS OF SAID UPWARDLY EXTENDING RELEASE ARM 